The statue of Jesus needed a few touch ups after being repositioned in an alcove overlooking the
sanctuary of Sacred Heart Church in Italian Village.

So Todd Brausch got to work, quickly mixing paint to match Jesus’ brown hair and climbing up
scaffolding to fill in his eyebrows and beard and make other small fixes.

Few details are lost on Brausch, who specializes in restoration, refinishing and fine art.
Raised a Roman Catholic, he has found a niche for his craft in Catholic churches.

“That’s where I’m at home, that’s where I’m comfortable,” he said. “I love to do this work, and
it’s rewarding. God blesses you when you listen and you pray and you listen for what your calling
is, and this is definitely mine.”

Brausch recently completed work to refinish the Sacred Heart of Jesus statue, as well as a
companion Sacred Heart of Mary statue for a chapel. The work capped a restoration project that
included repainting walls, marbleizing columns, and restoring the altars and lectern at the Tudor
Gothic-style church that seats about 800 and was dedicated in 1923.

The altars required sanding, smoothing and resculpting before spray-painting to avoid brush
strokes. Pieces then were glazed for an aging effect, and 23-karat gold leaf was applied to accent
carvings of angels and doves. The transformation took the church from a cold place with
battleship-gray columns to a warm, soft worship area, said the Rev. William Metzger, the church’s
administrator.

“It’s a beautiful church,” Metzger said. “It was created beautifully, and it should be kept
beautifully because we give our best to God whenever we can.”

Brausch, who studied at the Columbus College of Art and Design and in Ortisei, Italy, started
his business, T. Brausch Studio in Lithopolis, in 1999. He started work on Catholic churches
shortly thereafter.

He has done work on churches in Michigan, Indiana and Ohio, including recent work in Cincinnati,
Washington Court House and Wilmington. He is among the artists who painted murals at Pope John
XXIII Church in Canal Winchester.

He also has done work at Sacred Heart’s sister church, St. John the Baptist Italian Catholic
Church, where Metzger is pastor. The priest had a simple answer when asked why he picked Brausch
for the jobs: “Because he’s good.”

The Sacred Heart work cost $65,000 to $75,000, Metzger said, and was paid for largely through
gifts from former parishioners Elinor Chatfield and Catherine Brigel. It followed $30,000 of work
on the roof and heating system.

Along with the sanctuary, Sacred Heart’s chapel received a major face-lift. Dale Johnson of Old
World Stone Carving used marble from the church’s main lectern to create an altar and another
piece.

Johnson expressed respect for the talent found in the marble’s carving, likely done by hand with
sandpaper and files 100 or so years ago.

“The level of craft mastership exhibited here is so phenomenal, nobody in this hemisphere can
touch this,” he said. “That craft is gone.”

The restoration work, Brausch said, involves “just a lot of love, a lot of love.”

“I believe your life is for a reason, and the biggest reason you have is God,” he said. “And you
can run from it, but he’s just going to pull you back where you belong.”